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The game Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 isn't just an impressive Game of the Year contender, but also a massive commercial success. Studio the development team and publisher Kepler Interactive disclosed that this title surpassed 5 million units sold, this is even with it being a launch-day addition through the Game Pass service.

The game's performance came as a surprise for the team. I was convinced that we'd create an enjoyable experience that would meet moderate market performance,” a senior team member explained.

A technical director noted that Clair Obscur’s critical score, rated 93 by critics, was the most surprising moment to the studio versus “our initial expectations and what the reality proved to be. When the score released the entire team celebrated excitedly. It was really frantic.”

The positive reception prompted work on a free update for players featuring fresh areas, foes, and boss fights, as announced is coming in the next few months.

That said, while the game is growing, fans shouldn't anticipate the studio to grow. Our team includes a talented crew with a strong creative director who has a great vision for this game and also for new ideas. We'd like to keep the small-team dynamic that led to our success then develop major titles sequentially,” they noted.

Their team size sparked significant conversation when the game came out. Some developers, like Hideo Kojima, viewed this studio as the model for creative teams. Despite being relatively lean versus large developers, checking the game's credits reveals many individuals worked on it; Sandfall partnered with overseas animators for animation work, for example.

“Some hiring will occur slightly more for sure if we have a future production surge down the line,” they commented. “However, I envision rather a creative atelier comprising a handful exceptionally gifted creators capable of producing collective masterpieces.” It was stated that the studio's philosophy as a studio “is more to maintain the key advantages that enabled this success originally.”

Although it's too early for Sandfall to reveal exact details regarding upcoming titles — believe me, I attempted to learn more — the developers understand their essential identity. “Strategic combat, I think it's in the DNA of this project,” the lead programmer said. “It's still premature to specify what will interest us, but it's important also to stay true to the DNA of studio featuring rich storytelling and the interesting gameplay that drives our passion.”

The developer added that the project originated from the visionary developing his passion title. We aspire this approach will be repeated in coming projects.”